The Dodo Archive

Oklahoma Rejects Bill That Tried To Legalize Shooting Pets

A legislative panel in the Oklahoma House of Representatives has rejected a bill that would have allowed pet-owners to "euthanize" their animals with firearms. The bill, introduced by State Rep. Steve Martin, was voted down 8-4 by the state's House Judiciary Committee following fierce opposition from animal welfare groups. According to a Humane Society representative, the bill would have allowed animal owners to kill their pets for any reason, though Martin maintained that the bill merely would have legalized a commonly used method of "disposing" of animals.

"Euthanizing your own animal with a firearm in Oklahoma is done all the time," Martin told NewsOK. "People have animals that, for one reason or another, they're either sick or old or for some reason not suitable to go to a new home, and it is as painless to euthanize an animal with a firearm, if it's done humanely, as any other method."